Dunkirk

American  

[duhn-kurk] / ˈdʌn kɜrk /

noun

1. French Dunkerque.  a seaport in N France: site of the evacuation of a British expeditionary force of over 330,000 men under German fire May 29–June 4, 1940.

2. a period of crisis or emergency when drastic measures must be enforced.

   The smaller nations were facing a financial Dunkirk.

3. a city in W New York, on Lake Erie.

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Dunkirk Cultural  

1. The scene of a remarkable, though ignominious, retreat by the British army in World War II. Dunkirk, a town on the northern coast of France, was the last refuge of the British during the fall of France, and several hundred naval and civilian vessels took the troops back to England in shifts over three days.

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The term Dunkirk is sometimes used to signify a desperate retreat.

Example Sentences

The first three data centres would be at Dunkirk and near the northern cities of Cambrai and Amiens, he added.

From Barron's • May 30, 2026

It will also work with French energy-technology company Schneider Electric to build facilities to make components for the data centers near the port city of Dunkirk in the north of the country.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

Blum said that Schneider would take part in the design and supply of all the equipment with a factory to be built at the channel port of Dunkirk.

From Barron's • May 30, 2026

Nolan won two Oscars in 2024 for his last release, Oppenheimer, and also is known for films including Dunkirk, Inception, Interstellar and The Dark Knight.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

But there was one part in all this that he could not think through, one indistinct shape that the shambles twelve miles outside Dunkirk could not reduce to a simple outline.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan